Freelancer No More
by SweetRhapsody
Summary: BW- A freelancer is forced to join the war, and falls for Dinobot..right before he dies. What happens when he's brought back and she falls for someone else? More importantly, what does she do when they both die? Dinobot/OC Tarantulas/OC. M for later chaps
1. Stuck In The Middle With You

Chapter 1: Stuck In The Middle With You

I leaped through the dense jungle on all fours, the leaves and vines brushing and scratching at my long, whiskered face as I darted through, trying to get away from that annoying chauvinist, Silverbolt. I looked over my back for a second and heard a rustling noise in front of me. I turned my head back and **barely** managed to miss a tree snake that looked like it wanted to bite me, but thought better of it. I clearly wasn't made of skin and fur. I was in a hurry to get as far away from Silverbolt for two reasons that day. One was the fact that I just plain hate him and his stupid chivalry. The other reason was that I really didn't want to be bothered to join in the Beast Wars. Not today. I bounded over a raised tree root, making sure to keep my wings tucked nice and close to my thin body so they didn't get entangled and end up slowing me down. I was suddenly cut off mid-stride and almost ran into this new obstacle. Silverbolt. He found me. I cursed myself and transformed, my transmetal body clanking and whirring. I grabbed the two machetes from my wingtips and prepared to fight. I wasn't scared of this wuss.

The chivalrous Maximal fuzor did the same, then realizing I was a femme (How could he have** missed it**?), he put his weapons down.

That didn't stop me, of course, savage that I am. I ran at him, ready to tear him limb from mis-matched limb for being so chivalrous. I ripped at him in a fury--barely visible, even--and he just stood there and let me, which infuriated me further.

"Come on, Maximal.** Fight**!" I snarled at him.

Reluctantly, he picked his weapons back up and bolted at me.

I jumped up and executed a perfect front flip over Silverbolt, changing directions while I was upside down. I landed flawlessly behind him and swiftly took one of my razor sharp machetes and in one clean swipe, I sliced his right wing off.

He howled in pain and turned around to face me.

"Please, I mean you no harm." He said desperately, sparks and assorted types of electricity flying off of his back and disintegrating before they hit the ground. He clearly didn't want to fight me. Either he knew I was going to give his doggy-bird tail a good whipping, or because of his stupid chauvinism. Maybe it was **both**.

I scoffed. "I have two questions for you, Maximal." I held up one clawed finger. "If you mean me no harm, then why are you following me?" I held up another finger and continued. "Do you honestly think I care if you're too much of a sissy to fight me?" I then cleaned off the machete I'd used on his wing and twirled it between my fingers.

"I'm guessing that's a 'no'...?" He said, completely disregarding my first question.

"More like a** Dear-Primus-don't-tell-me-he's-serious**." I responded, grinning a grin that showed off my front fangs nicely.

Silverbolt blinked and I flipped back over him. Before he had time to react, I used my other machete to chop off his remaining wing.

"That's for being a chauvinistic twit." I retorted as I transformed and took flight.

My name is Moonshredder, or more commonly known as Shredder, as my favourite pastime was shredding anyone who comes near me to confetti. I was the first fuzor to arrive, and neither Maximal or Predacon. As I already mentioned, I was a freelancer. I **really **didn't want to get caught up in their silly war.

I'd always admired my beast mode, since way before the transwarp explosion, when I was a soft and fluffy black panther with big, brown eagle wings. Kind of out of place, huh? I wasn't all black though, I had a single, silver crescent moon on my left flank, which is where the first part of my name comes from. After the transwarp explosion, the soft feathers that made up my wings were turned into precision blades, each and everyone of them. The topmost 'feathers' were now-- as you know--machetes, the end of my tail, where there used to be a fuzzy fringe was now a curved dagger, and my tail was sectioned so I could swing it easier. At the joint of both of my wings used to be an out-of-place feather. Now it was a small short sword. I have two claws--those were always there, but now they were made of metal--on the back of each of my legs, up at the elbow joint and also down by my 'wrists'.

I was one 'bot you did** not** want to run into when I was in a bad mood.

--

"Shredder's on the move again." Cheetor reported as he and Rattrap dragged Silverbolt and his severed wings into the Maximal base.

"An' she ain't happy." Rattrap added.

"Maybe I can convince her to join our side." Silverbolt offered hopefully

Optimus Primal shook his head. "If you try that again, she might mount your head on a plaque." He paused for a split nanocycle. " Megatron can't even get her to join the Predacons. She's a freelancer." He paused again and surveyed the room thoughtfully. "She might join our side for pay, though.."

"I can...try to..convince her." Dinobot spoke up. "We both have our...honor."

"You can try, Dinobot, but be careful." Optimus consented. "Cheetor!" He called. "Scout the air for Shredder and I'll send Dinobot out when you've found her."

--

I flew around in no particular area or pattern, bored as a 'bot could be when she didn't have any friends. Of course, the whole war thing didn't make things any easier, I suppose, what with the opposing sides only seeking me out because I was fast and strong.

It wasn't too long before I ran into everyone's favourite idiotic bug. Waspinator.

He transformed and looked at me hopefully as I did the same. "Wazzpinator like cat-bird. Will cat-bird join Predaconzz for Wazzpinator?" He asked.

I always found his third-person dialect **hilarious**, but managed to keep a straight face.

"Oh, bug off, bug face." I retorted as I reached for my left machete and my tail, which doubled as an excruciatingly painful whip.

"Wazzpinator not want to fight cat-bird." He said, nearly panicking.

"Oh yeah, well, what if I want to fight you, huh, Predacon?" I growled.

"Wazzpinator not want to do thizz.." He said as he pulled out his gun. He shot at me, and surprisingly enough, he managed to hit my left wing, sending me backwards a few meters.

I chuckled menacingly and Waspinator looked at me in pure and total fear. "That's exactly what I was waiting for...Waspinator." I grinned a lopsided grin and narrowed one gold and green optic. Waspinator looked at me in surprise. I had **never** called anyone by their actual names, but more often, referred to them by what side they were on. "Don't worry," I started in a slightly erotic voice, stunning him into silence. I slowly raised my machete, practically praying to Primus that he would keep his gaze fixed on me. "I'll go easy on you."

Suddenly, I felt a sharp pain in my chest, about where my spark was. The shot did some nasty internal damage, though I knew I was going to get out of this just fine. Considering, of course, that I wasn't captured by anyone.

--

Cheetor was flying around, looking for the one 'bot he did **not** want to find. Sure, Shredder was cute, but she was also deadly. She had almost killed him once, before the transwarp explosion, when she was a bit more sociable. Getting turned into a walking armory had hardened her. Back then, she had reasons for trying to kill him. Now, she would just attack **anything** that moved. Luckily for Cheetor, Rattrap had managed to get the former moved before the dangerous femme could finish the job.

"No sign of her yet, Bigbot." He spoke tentatively into his commlink.

"Keep looking." Optimus replied. "She could be on the ground too, so watch your back."

"Gotcha."

Just as Cheetor was about to turn off his jets and scout the ground, he heard the familiar clanking and slicing sounds. A Predacon somewhere nearby was transforming. As quietly as he could manage, the small cat moved closer to the source of the sound, and faintly heard someone--with a horrible vocabulary--ask someone else if the latter would join his side. Moonshredder had been about four meters in front of Cheetor, and when she transformed, he nearly fell out of the sky as she reached for her left machete and her tail.

The two conversed for a little while, then Waspinator shot Shredder's wing. She chuckled after she had straightened herself up a bit, and Waspinator looked like he was going to fall apart **all on his own**, and just out of fear.ed to talk and began to move a nit closer to him, Primus only knew why.

All of a sudden, Inferno appeared just beyond Waspinator, raised his hand in a salute and said something that looked to Cheetor like "For the Royalty", or "For the Colony". Then he shot her in the chest.

The femme's wings folded and she spiraled into the jungle, letting out a long, loud mew of pain.

"Found her, Bigbot. Inferno just shot her out of the sky. Get Dinobot out here." Cheetor said before killing the jets to follow Shredder into the dark.

--

I groaned and tried to sit up, but the pain in my chest was too great, and I collapsed back against what felt to be a tree trunk.

"Just relax." A voice said calmly. "Relax and don't try to move. You'll only make it worse."

"Wh...Who are you?" I asked groggily.

"That doesn't matter." The voice replied. "What matters now is that you're still in one piece, surprisingly. Inferno hit you pretty hard."

"Inferno?" I exclaimed, attempting to open my optics, but failing. It seemed as though they were sealed shut. "Why that little fire ant! I'll get him. I'll get him so good Megatron won't be able to find all of his parts! That little sonova--"

"Shh." The voice said, and soon, I heard another voice.

"Is she..alright?" The second voice asked.

I groaned again and sat up with some difficulty.

"Inferno did quite a number on her internals." The first voice paused, as if trying to asses the damage, then continued worriedly. "She can't open her optics and she could barely sit up."

"Rhinox can...fix her." The second voice said with confident affirmation.

Then I blacked out.


	2. Freelancer No More

Chapter 2: Freelancer No More

"**BLAST**! The Maximals managed to get Shredder. Yes. But they won't have her for long. No." Megatron said to himself, tapping his fingers together.

"Wazzpinator try to get cat-bird, but cat-bird only want to shoot at Wazzpinator." The green, yellow and black dunce spoke up timidly.

"Oh shut it, Waspy." Blackarachnia cut in venomously before she left. "Nobody likes you."

"As for you, Inferno," Megatron continued. "you were only supposed to capture Shredder. There was no need to shoot her unconscious; she is not a Maximal...yet. We are not going to get her to join the Predacons by shooting her. Try to pay better attention to my instructions." He paused and his face contorted into a mask of mild anger. "Now get out of my sight!"

"Yes, my Queen!" Inferno saluted Megatron and then left.

"Oh, I **do **wish he'd stop calling me that." Megatron complained before receiving a transmission from Tarantulas. "What is it?"

"The Maximals are repairing Shredder." The spider reported.

"Oh, how sweet. Have you figured out her weaknesses?"

"Her honor." Tarantulas said simply. "Hers is the same as Dinobot's."

"**And**?"

"That's it. She only has one weakness, and that is her honor." The transmetal spider tapped a few buttons on the computer in his lair and paused, perplexed and amused. "Oh...my mistake. She also has a soft spot for 'bad boys' with heavy weaponry."

Megatron chuckled. "How absurd. Although, that gives me an idea."

--

Dinobot had been worried about Shredder for a while. He did like her, of course--she was a very likable femme, **even** if she was trying to kill you--but only because she shared his sense of honor. 'Nothing more that that.' He assured himself. Even as the thought was running through his processor, the femme fatal in question stepped out of the C.R. chamber as good as new, and Dinobot found himself getting slightly excited. "Feeling..better?" He asked as she walked to the center of the main control room.

"Much." She turned around to face him, her gold-green optics gleaming. "Thank you, Dinobot." She gave her head a quick nod in his direction, then turned back and faced Optimus. "So how about that deal of ours? I believe I owe you and your team for rescuing me."

"I only ask that you fight on our side." He paused, then added quickly at her intrigued gaze: "For a little while. As long as you like."

"Three major battles." She said simply while examining her claws. "Oh, that's not nearly enough. How's four? I think that should return the favour nicely. Anyone think more? Less?" She looked around the room, her intentions obviously not violent. **This time**.

Cheetor cleared his vocal processors nervously. "Uh..four-and-a-half?"

She chuckled. "Five? Yes? No?"

"Five sounds...reasonable." Dinobot said off-handedly.

"Or however long you want," Cheetor grinned dreamily.

"Ohh, don't tell me **you're** chivalrous too." Shredder rolled her optics and followed up with an annoyed smile.

"I can be when I want." He replied confidently.

Shredder narrowed her optics for a split nanocycle; barely noticeable. "**Don't be**." She warned. "Or you'll end up like brave little Silver-butt who nearly got himself hacked in half earlier today." She gave her head a nod in Silverbolt's direction and he shuddered a bit. "That would be a shame, too. I kinda like you." She then proceeded to transform and Dinobot watched her with interest; the silver crescent moon on her left flank had been replaced by the red Maximal symbol. "I'm going out for a breath of fresh air. Anyone want to join me?" She asked,

Dinobot was the first to speak. "I will..make sure Shredder stays out of..trouble."

Shredder smiled--being sure to show off her savage-looking fangs--and trotted over to the lift, Dinobot at her heels.

--

I could not believe what I had done. After all these solar cycles of swearing to be a freelancer for life, I had stooped low enough to join the Beast Wars, and to top it all off, I was flirting with one of the Maximals. I didn't mind Cheetor too much. He got annoying as the **Pit** after too long spent with him, but his intentions were pure.

I was always kind of scared of Dinobot; I only ever saw him as a threat or some sort of a fictitious monster who would rip my head off and impale me with his spinning sword. So, I tried to be as much like him as possible; if you know how a possible foe works, you're more likely to be able to defend yourself against him or her.

I sighed audibly, forgetting that I wasn't alone anymore.

Dinobot snorted and spoke: "What is it?"

I looked up at him, then continued to watch my step. "Just the fact that I swore **never** to join the Beast Wars. And where do I find myself now?"

"It is a..shame." Dinobot replied. "Though, you are an excellent warrior. I am merely glad the Predacons did not..capture you."

"Yeah. Me too." I said as I transformed and stretched my wings. "I'm gonna go up for a good view of the big blue. Care to join me?" He began to remind me that he couldn't fly, but I interrupted him. "I am able to carry you." I pointed out, narrowing one optic. He mimicked the action and told me that he preferred to remain on the ground. "As you wish." I smiled and rocketed up into the clear, open sky. "Aww, **for the love of**..." Flying towards me were Megs and his two favourite flying minions; Waspinator and Inferno. I dove back to the ground, landing gracefully in front of Dinobot. "Guess who's coming." I said as I grabbed my machetes which made slicing sounds as they brushed the other blades on my wings.

Dinobot transformed and grabbed hold of his tail and his blade. I had always admired that blade and the unique way that it spun in sections. Normally, the thought of another transformer being impaled by that blade gave me shivers up and down my spine. Not today; today, I was relishing the thought.

I was about to burst back into the sky to fight Megatron and his two cronies, when something with three purple fingers grabbed my neck and held a gun to my head. Tarantulas laughed and when I squirmed, he pushed the gun harder against my head. I winced.

Dinobot looked at me with surprise, then glared at Tarantulas viciously. "Let her go." He snarled.

"**Not** until you surrender." The spider countered venomously.

"Don't do it, Dinobot!" I yelled. "I can be put back together!"

Dinobot bowed his head and when he looked back up, he looked solemnly at me, then turned his gaze to Tarantulas. "That would be..against my honor." He then put his tail and his blade back. "Let her go." He commanded. Tarantulas did just that, but violently so, flinging me roughly to the ground. Dinobot gave me a hand up, and the Predacons surrounded us, forming a big circle.

"Oh dear." Megatron taunted. "The freelancer and the traitor, trapped like rats, **yes**." He tapped his two tiny fingers together ominously

It was then that I played my wild card. "I guess you're right." I looked around at the Predacons surrounding us. "I suppose we should maybe give up before we've started. Save some unwanted use of energy." Dinobot began to protest, but I subtly nudged him and winked, covering the wink with a twitch of an ear.

Dinobot played along, bowing his head to avoid anyone reading his emotions. "We are..sorely outnumbered." He agreed in a sideways manner.

"Oh?" Megatron asked suspiciously. "Giving up so easily, Shredder? This isn't like you."

"We are outnumbered, as Dinobot mentioned. There is no point in fighting." I paused and turned to face Tarantulas, looking him right in the visor. "Of course, I could just do this," I said as I moved so swiftly that I could hardly see my own machete swing round and slice off the spider's head quite cleanly.

"Ow."

"That evened up the odds a bit. He was pretty useless anyhow." I said with a smile as Megatron fumed. "Anyone else?" I asked.

Blackarachnia took me up on my offer and ran at me. I darted to one side, hitting Quickstrike. "Go Sugah-bot!" He called excitedly. "You kick her kiester!"

I turned to face him for a second while the other femme picked herself off of the ground. "Who are you cheering for?" I asked.

"Well, **you, **doggonnit!" He responded, slightly perplexed.

"I'm not even on your side!" I wanted to say something further, but I ended up having to block and attack from the spider femme, and so, was cut off. At last, I turned back to him and said in a finalizing manner: "You're distracting. Here, taste my vengeance." And so, both his arms dropped neatly to the ground.

"Women," He groaned as he fell on his face.

Blackarachnia ran at me again, this time managing to graze my arm. I snarled at her, anticipating the outcome, and ran at her, my machetes brandished. We met up with a crash and tore at each other unceremoniously. She ripped at me in a rage, making a long, vertical scratch across my left optic. I ripped back, finally getting enough distance to execute a perfect roundhouse kick, which sent her flying, just as Waspinator's head went flying across my line of vision. I chuckled slightly and Dinobot, who currently had his hands empty, pointed over my shoulder and yelled indistinctly.

I turned around, and saw--to my extreme displeasure--Megatron's tail pointed at my head, **charged and ready**.

"**Oh**." I looked up at him, trying to keep my calm and humorous demeanour as my ears immediately went back against my head. "Hello to you too."

"Join my side, Shredder. Yes. You would make an excellent Predacon." He tempted.

"Nah, that's alright." I then bowed my head and looked back up at him solemnly. "That would be against my honor." I then, very swiftly grabbed my tail and whipped the Predacon leader in the chest. He staggered backwards a bit, the fired at me haphazardly. I flipped backwards until I hit an obstacle of some sort; a tree. I jumped up and my fingertips made contact with a low branch. 'Perfect.' Quickly, I grabbed onto it and pushed off of the trunk with my feet to get some momentum. I was about to kick him, but he grabbed my left foot. "Not to worry," I muttered to myself. I continued swinging as much as I could with him holding my foot, and then kicked him in the face with the other one. He let go and fell flat on his back. I let go of the branch and landed flawlessly on my feet.

Megatron got up very slowly, groaning a bit. He glared down at me. "I will be back, Shredder. Mark my words, I will be back. **Yeess**." Then he took what was left of his Predacons and left.

"That was fun." I commented to Dinobot as I turned towards him, noticing that he had about 4 times the damage that I did. "Thank you, Dinobot. You've potentially saved my life. I am eternally in your debt." I bowed my head and went down on my knees, sitting on the claw on my heel.

Dinobot put a hand on my head and I put my ears back. He was silent for a while, then he spoke slowly, "No, you are **not**. I was merely doing...what was right."

"Yes, and for that, I owe you my life, Dinobot. You saved me. It would be against my honor not to be indebted to you."

Dinobot sighed and I laughed in my head; we both had almost the exact same sense of honor. His was telling him not to allow me to be indebted to him, and mine was telling me the exact opposite.

"Alright," He said and he stroked my head. "but don't do anything..drastic."

"As you wish." I smiled up at him and heaved myself to my feet. "Allow me to carry you back. You are in no shape to walk."

He sighed again. "And so it begins."

I transformed to my beast mode and folded my wings as Dinobot reluctantly straddled my back and sat down. I grunted silently and began the long trek back to the Maximal base.

--

Dinobot couldn't believe it. He had managed to get Shredder in his debt. It wasn't intentional, of course, and went against everything he believed in. Even so, he was slightly exhilarated; maybe he could manage to...get her to like him.

The two were nearing the base when Dinobot noticed that Shredder's shoulder blades were beginning to grind together. "You need..a break." He pointed out.

She just chuckled. "Oh no. See, you've got it **all** wrong. It's just my **legs** that need a break." She looked back at him, and he could see that she was instantly amused by the look on his face; it was a cross between Oh-Primus-I'm-gonna-be-sick and Don't-even-think-about-it. "Hang on tight!" She then stretched her wings and began striding, gaining momentum to take off. Finally, she began flapping them and the duo rose into the air, higher and higher, and the higher they got, the tighter Dinobot held onto Shredder's neck. "Don't worry, Dinobot, I know what I'm doing." She said as she began circling the base. "I'm a lot stronger than you give me credit for." She started to flap her wings swiftly, disturbing the dust as they touched down, just outside the shield.

"Sentinel, stand down." He ordered as he got off of Shredder's back. He entered the base limping, the femme close behind to catch him if he decided to fall. She even went so far as to blow him a very subtle kiss before the C.R. door closed.

--

"Yo, Shreddie!" Rattrap called, thankfully, not noticing the kiss I blew to Dinobot. "What happened out there? We got a transmission from Lizardlips, but it was just **static**!"

"Yeah!" Cheetor joined in.

"Were you hurt?" Silverbolt asked. I snarled at him, and he seemingly shrunk a little bit. "OK.."

"We ran into Preds." I began. "Or rather, **they** ran into **us**. Tarantulas" Just the name sent shivers down my spine; he had **always** creeped me out big time. "held a gun against my head and threatened to shoot unless Dinobot surrendered. He did, and now, I find myself indebted to him." I finished, anticipating the reactions.

"You're **what**?!" Rhinox exclaimed. "We've all been saved by Dinobot, but indebted to him?"

"It would have been against my honor **not to be**!" I countered.

Rhinox sighed and turned away. "You two and your honor."

"So what, you guys fought them off all by yourselves?" Cheetor asked from behind me.

"Well, yeah. I didn't see any of you coming to help." I responded, a hint of venom in my voice.

"So where'd that scratch on your optic come from?"

My hand instinctively reached up to my left optic. "Blackarachnia. I fought her and Megs."

"And Dinobot fought everyone else?" He continued.

"Nope. Just Inferno and Waspinator."

"But what about Tarantulas and Quickstrike?"

I chuckled. "They went down without a fight."

--

"Blast you, Tarantulas!" Megatron bellowed angrily. "You out of all of us should know how Shredder is! She beaten you countless times!"

"You bellowed?" Tarantulas asked as he entered Megatron's presence.

"Yes, I did." He responded calmly, then quickly switched to an expression that said "infuriated" and rounded on the spider, tapping his fingers on the arm of his chair angrily. "You are a fool! One would think that after the countless times Shredder has defeated you, you would learn something, perhaps. One would think that you would be able to defend against her speed, but nooo.."

"But Megatron, I didn't think she was going to decapitate me again!" Tarantulas shot back.

"Oh, when do you ever think, besides your inventions?" The Predacon leader paused, amused by a thought that had popped into his head. "Or do I sense a weak spot for her?" He chuckled, but Tarantulas stood defiant, showing only one sign that he had guessed right; no optic contact. He grabbed his rubber ducky. "I'm going to take a bath, nobody disturb me." He lowered himself into the tub and the spider left, embarrassed. "Hmm.." He thought aloud. "Shredder's only weaknesses are her honor and a soft spot for mechs with heavy weapons...She does seem to have a bit of a thing for Dinobot..." Megatron's voice trailed off. "Yes..it just might work."


	3. Flying Solo

Chapter 3: Flying Solo

"If I'm not mistaken, I believe I owe you only one more battle." I said with mixed emotions. I had come to like the group of Maximals since my induction day, and not much had happened since then, but Megsy had gotten a new favourite helper, Protoform X, or 'Rampage' as he liked to call it. He was so strong, he only needed half of his spark. Megs used the other half to torture him when he didn't behave. It was terribly amusing. Dinobot had switched sides...**twice**. I respected this decision of course, but that doesn't mean I agreed with it; I had grown attached to Dinobot and was quite lonely without him. Which reminds me of the fact that Dinobot had released me from his debt; I had jumped in front of a particularly powerful Predacon shot, receiving nasty damage to my beast mode's head. Speaking of damage, I had decided to keep the scar across my left optic; I had always wanted a battle scar.

"That will be..a shame." Dinobot said, a hint of sorrow in his beautifully raspy voice.

I nodded and took Dinobot aside to the valley, so we could talk without being interrupted by Rattrap, but also the fact that he had just come from there after squashing Tarantulas.

"I am going to miss you, Shredder." Dinobot said with a downcast expression. "It was an..honor working with you."

"Hey, hey." I reached my hand out and lifted his chin up, making optic contact. "I won't forget about **you**, Dinobot, I could **never**, especially after that first time you saved me from Tarantulas." I moved a bit closer to him so that there was no way he could avoid my piercing gaze; so that we were optic-to-optic, and soon, mouth-to-mouth, though only briefly. I pulled away and Dinobot looked at me with wide and shocked optics. "I'm sorry. That was uncalled for." I apologized, both proud and ashamed of myself for my actions as I looked away.

"No, it wasn't." He replied as he gently turned my face back to meet his unusually gentle expression. "I have been waiting or an excuse to...do that to you since the first time I saw you." He finished, softly putting one clawed hand on my back and pulling me into a tight hug, carefully avoiding my wings and the sharp blades on them.

"I love you, Dinobot." I whispered as I wrapped my arms around his neck and rested the side of my face on his shoulder, nuzzling my muzzle into his neck. Several cycles passed before Dinobot broke the embrace, hissing. "What is it?" I asked, looking up at him.

"Predacons." He replied simply. "**All** of them." He looked my straight in the optics and I could've sworn that I saw a touch of fear, love and sorrow all at once. The emotions quickly vanished, and he flared up at me. "Go back to the base!" He yelled at me suddenly. "**GO**!" When I hesitated, he snarled at me and repeated his order. Reluctantly, I obliged, and as I soared into the air, I heard him faintly say: "And don't get..back-up. This is **my** battle."

It only took me about half a cycle to get back to the Maximal base; I was in a frenzied panic, mostly out of worry for my new found love. The very second I arrived, I collapsed in a heap, and everyone except Silverbolt gathered around me, talking all at once and asking what was the matter.

"Dinobot...Preds...valley..." I managed to gasp, struggling to my feet.

"Yes, he told us already." Optimus responded grimly.

"Well, come on! Let's go!" I exclaimed. When nobody moved, I snarled and transformed. I bowed my head for a bit and raised my head before I spoke, my gaze scanning the room. "I love Dinobot. I know he's going to get fatally wounded if nobody helps, I just know it! I don't care what you guys say, I'm going to give him back up." With those words, I walked straight out and took off.

--

"Maybe we should.." Rattrap started uncertainly. "help? I mean, Dino-butt's up against **six** Preds. How long are those two gonna be able to fight them off?"

"Plus, the future of the human race is at stake." Optimus added, then continued with finality. "Let's go."

--

I circled the battlefield cautiously; flames licked at my feet and belly, and I was looking for a safe place to land. finally, I found a green tree close to where Megatron and Dinobot were standing, and landed in it as silently as I could. Megatron just seemed to be taunting Dinobot, calling him "Old technology, obsolete", when suddenly, he pointed his tail up into the tree I was sitting in and smiled a chilling smile.

"Hello, pussycat." Then he opened fire on me and it seemed like he was not able to miss; every shot he fired hit me, and I fell out of the tree to the hard, cruel ground. The last thing I heard before I blacked out was the sound of Megatron's laughter and Dinobot's voice.

"**SHREDDER**!"

I was awakened rudely by a rough shaking.

"Hurry! Wake up, Shreddie!" An urgent voice said.

"What...?" I asked, barely conscious, yet I knew somehow that this wasn't good; Rattrap never made physical contact with me, be it shaking my hand or shaking me awake. "What? What is it?"

He stuttered a little, then finally caught his tongue. "Just **get up**, ya miserable feline!"

"OK, OK." So I opened my optics and slowly sat up. I looked up at him, and he pointed a little to the right of me. My gaze followed his finger, and I instantly knew why Rattrap had been so urgent; Dinobot was lying a little way from me, and in the worst shape I had ever seen anybody in. "Gah!" I let out a little scream of worry and got to my knees and by his side. "No, no, no!" Immediately, I grabbed one of his hands and tears began to stream down my face. "What happened?" I asked, my gaze not leaving Dinobot's face and all the damage that had been done.

"He saved the valley and all its inhabitants." Optimus said grimly.

"But at what cost?" I continued as Dinobot blinked slowly and met my worried gaze. "**Please**, Rhinox, tell me he's alright." I pleaded, looking up at the Maximal techie desperately.

"I am..beyond repair, Shredder." Dinobot replied weakly.

"That's **not possible**! Waspinator's been blown to bits **tons** of times! **He's** still around!" I argued.

"Shredder, this is..**different**." He countered. I shut my mouth and listened. "My body is no longer...in **any **shape to hold a spark. Waspinator..was always only...**slightly** injured."

"Dinobot's right." Rhinox said. "He's too far gone."

"But...but..." I stuttered and sputtered. "That's not fair!"

Dinobot managed a weakened smile at my childishness. "Sometimes, it seems...**life itself **is not fair. But you must live it to its extent and do..what you must to make it more fair for..others. It seems I have not made life...any more fair for you, but now the early humans have..another chance." He coughed and shuddered. "Just remember this, Shredder: I love you." Those were his last words.

"No!" I screamed, evoking a flock of nearby birds to scatter as I leaned over Dinobot and buried my face in--what was left of--his chest. I sat there, mourning my lost love until Optimus pulled me up gently.

"He is going to be missed by us all." He said sadly.

--

Soon after Dinobot's funeral had taken place, I decided to create my own little grave for him; I carved his name into a flat slab of rock and drove it into the ground where he had died. It wasn't much, but it was a reminder of what he was willing to do in order to save a certain race from extinction.

I stood there, in front of my little grave marker for some time before making my way back to the Maximal base. Optimus was the first to greet me.

"You are relieved of your duties, Shredder." He said solemnly, laying a hand on my shoulder. I bowed my head and he continued. "Dinobot's departing is hard on all of us, but especially you, I expect. I know you wouldn't want to fight without him."

"Thank you, Primal." I said, not making optic contact. After about a cycle, I looked up. "You have a great team. Good luck." With those words, I left and resumed my freelancing state.

The period of time that followed was the longest I had ever experienced. There was nothing to do besides fight off creepy, over-eager transmetal spiders and visit my makeshift memorial for Dinobot. Every day, I brought something different to his memorial. Sometimes I brought my kill for the day, sometimes I picked a bunch of flowers and brought them with. Sometimes, I just brought myself and my thoughts.

Anyways, this particular day, I was kneeling in front of the "grave stone", a single tear of longing rolling down my cheek, when I was brutally lifted off of the ground by a huge bluish claw that could only belong to Rampage. I struggled to break free of his grasp, but the more I fought, the tighter he squeezed.

"Yes, I can feel your fear. Let it consume you." He laughed a positively terrifying laugh as I began to "hyperventilate" and whine like a sad puppy dog. The tighter Rampage squeezed me, the more I wished Dinobot was alive and there to save me; I hated to admit it, but I needed a hero.

As if on cue, a white and silver figure with burgundy on its chest emerged from Primus-only-knows-where and commanded Rampage. I could only assume it was Megsy's newest creation, designed to babysit the psychopathic crab.

"Put her..down." The white figure instructed. "Megatron wants her..alive."

I shuddered. This new cronie of Megs' scared me about as much as that creepy spider, Tarantulas. His left optic was big and round, like a monocle--which I immediately assumed was a laser--while his other optic was narrow and orange. He looked very proper, but in an intimidating way. He had huge, razor sharp claws for fingers--which put me out of my place as "walking armory"--a slim waist--compared to his chest--a long, white tail that looked as if it belonged to a cyber-velociraptor and more claws on his feet. He probably had more claws than what I named, but right at that moment, I didn't care.

Rampage hesitated, but dropped me, making sure that I landed not on my feet, but in a stuttering, gasping, frightened heap.

"Please, I just-" I started.

The white figure snarled and his monocle optic lit up red. I immediately shut up and bowed my head. "OK, I'll go quietly." I said in a small voice.

He snorted, then said in surprise: "Shredder?"

I looked up and gave him a skeptical expression. "Yes." I hesitated, then continued. "I **am** the **only** freelancing transformer on this planet. And," I continued, growing more courageous as I stood up and forced myself to look into his optics. "if that isn't good enough for you, I'm the only winged black panther. Ever."

He smiled a positively chilling smile, although it wasn't meant to be; his mouth full of sharp curved teeth hindered his ability to look genuinely not scary. His orange optic widened into an expression of surprise, longing and glee. "It is I..Dinobot!" He exclaimed.

I chuckled sarcastically. "Uh, no. Dinobot is dead." Then I added viciously: "Megatron killed him!" I pulled out a single machete and ran at him, enraged that he would take my suffering as a joke. He caught me by the shoulder with his left hand and looked down at me, half-pleadingly.

"I do not wish to..harm you, Shredder." He said.

"Only 'cause Megsy wants me alive!" I retorted.

Behind me, Rampage shuffled around restlessly, not content with the lack of hostilities of his counterpart's behalf.

The white creature holding my shoulder shook his head solemnly. "No, Shredder. I still..love you." At my grimace, he gave a hurt little frown and continued. "Don't you remember the..kiss we shared in the valley?"

I gasped and stepped back from him, realizing just then that he was about a head taller than I. "But..but how? Only Dinobot and I knew about.." My voice trailed off. "that."

He nodded and smiled, this time, not as chilling.

"If you really are Dinobot reincarnated, I need proof." I said tentatively.

"Fair enough." He wrapped his arms around my waist and pushed his face closer to my own, then whispered, "It was an..honor working with you." then he kissed me, and it was exactly as it had been before, the only difference being the fact that he had died soon after the last one. The very second we parted, I wrapped my arms around him in return and snuggled my head into his chest, right below his neck. I purred as I began to hear his spark pulse, and I pulled my whole body closer to his. He began to stroke my back lazily, when suddenly, I was snatched up again by that same bluish claw.

"Oh, come **on**!" I objected, but to no avail.

Dinobot looked up at me hanging helplessly--once again--from Rampage's claw, then turned his attention to the crab himself, managing both a thoughtful and vicious look at the same moment. "We should..return to Megatron."

"Why don't we just dispose of her?!" Rampage argued. "We don't need her! We have plenty of force!"

Dinobot just stared at him and tapped his foot patiently. When Rampage didn't get the hint, Dinobot gave him a clue. "**What** should we do with Shredder?"

"**KILL HER**!" The crab continued.

"Wrong." With that, Dinobot reached up to his spark chamber which opened up, revealing his pulsing blue spark. I watched with mild interest as he carefully grabbed it and pulled it from his chest. Slowly, he compressed the spark between his thumb claw and his fore claw, and I instantly dropped to the ground, barely moving in time before the agonized Rampage almost stepped on me. I scurried back and hid behind Dinobot. I winced at Rampage's howls of agony and anguish.

"Take her to Megatron!" He finally submitted.

"That's better." Dinobot allowed his spark back into its chamber and looked down at me. He held his left hand out for me to take and I did, being extremely careful of his huge, sharp claws. "Shall we?"

"Yes," I responded. "we shall."


	4. Pred Again

Chapter 4:

"Excellent, Dinobot2, **yeess**." Megatron said, a very pleased expression on his face as Dinobot and I walked towards him in his chair. "Welcome, Shredder." He said as he extended his right hand in greeting. I stepped forward and shook it hesitantly. "Don't worry, I only wish to ask a favor of you, yes." I nodded my head slowly. "Dinobot, Rampage, I would like to have a word with Shredder alone." He paused. "Don't worry, Dinobot, you will get her back in one piece and functional."

With that, the two left, leaving Megatron and I alone.

"What do you want, Megatron?" I asked suspiciously.

"I only wish to ask if you will join the Predacons." He replied simply.

"What's the catch?"

"There is none!" Megatron exclaimed. "You get everything you've earned and could ever want; you get your love. And you only have to stay as long as he does."

"You **killed** Dinobot!" I yelled, suddenly angered.

"I did **no such thing**!" He shot back. "Dinobot died because he ran out of energy after destroying the golden disc!" He calmed down a little bit. "And even if I **had** finished him off, I **did** 'bring him back', after all." He continued to explain. "I removed the old Dinobot's memory chips as soon as the Maximals' backs were turned, and then modified them to suit my standards. I made sure that the only thing he would remember is you. Now he works for me, and me alone."

I growled to myself. If I were to join the Predacons, I would have to give up my honorable nature, which I had come to grow fold of, even though it sometimes proved as a weakness. I sighed. "I accept."

"Excellent, Shredder. You will not regret this decision, **no**."

"I hope you're right." I replied as I left, swinging my tail from side to side.

"**And**?" Dinobot asked as I emerged from Megatron's chamber.

In a swift motion, my hand hovered over my left thigh and the silver crescent moon changed to the purple Predacon symbol. "He managed to sway me." I smiled.

Dinobot sort of grinned proudly as he leaned down, planting a kiss on my forehead. "I believe we have some..catching up to do." With that, he put an arm around my waist and led the way to his room.

--

"I've just got word from Depth Charge of Shredder joining the Predacons." Optimus informed his troops after the manta ray radioed him from inside the dense forest where Shredder had built her make-shift gravestone for Dinobot.

Cheetor shook his head. "Why would she do **that**?"

"Dinobot." Optimus replied.

"Great." Rattrap started. "First a Predacon Dinobot, now a Predacon Shredder, both with zero honor. We're **all gonna die**."

--

I let out a soft, barely noticeable sigh. Megatron wasn't kidding when he said that the only thing Dinobot remembered from his past was me. 'Oh well,' I thought. 'It doesn't matter now, we're both Preds.'

We were laying in his room, on the recharge berth. I had my left arm flung haphazardly across his chest, my right arm positioned under his neck while my fingers softly stroked the right side of his face and my head rested cozily on his shoulder. His left arm was wrapped around my upper body, his claws fiddling with my beast mode's head, and his right arm was hanging lazily off the edge of the berth.

"I missed you so much, Dinobot." I said, tilting my head upwards to try and see his face.

He just nodded, looked down at me and kissed my left optic, the one with the scar. "How did you..get that scratch?" He asked, his gaze lingering on the scarred optic sensor.

"Big fight." I responded simply.

"Really?" He continued. "What happened? And why did you...keep it?"

"I was fighting Blackarachnia, and she got fed up with me, I guess, and tried to rip out my optics. As for why I kept it, I always kind of wanted a battle scar."

He chuckled slightly and began to play with the screws on my beast mode's head. "May I?"

I was silent for a bit, trying to figure out what he was up to. It didn't take long. "Yeah.." I replied with slight reluctance. "Go ahead."

--

Dinobot II hissed softly as he stroked Shredder's back, as far as his arm would reach, down to her tail. He had been slightly surprised when she had agreed to make love with him. Megatron had done him justice with this new body, he thought.

He didn't remember much from his past life, except Shredder and the fact that his old chassis had been destroyed, so Megatron built him a newer, better body. And **stronger**.

Before Dinobot had had a chance to ask Shredder anything else, she had begun to purr and went into standby. Even now, she was still purring. It was cute, he thought, but was starting to get a little annoying, so he put himself into standby before he did anything that he would later regret.

Dinobot had one weird dream that night.

It began with him and Shredder kissing when suddenly, she pulled away and apologized. He countered, saying that he'd been waiting a long time to do that to her. They embraced for what seemed like the longest time, until he sensed that something was wrong, and told Shredder to leave. He radioed Optimus Primal (This part was especially confusing to the Transmetal II) and told him that all seven Predacons were tearing the Valley apart. He took them down, one by one, until only Megatron remained. The Predacon leader began to say something about "Old technology", when he lifted his right arm and fired into a nearby tree. Shredder fell out of it. Dinobot screamed her name, then woke up, hissing.

"Whoa, whoa, what's wrong?" A small, feminine voice asked softly from the mech's left side.

"Nothing." He gasped, the aftermath of the nightmare making him slightly dizzy.

"Are you **sure**?" Shredder asked gently. "You were tossing and turning in your sleep and even called my name a few times." She continued, clearly worried.

"Just a nightmare." Dinobot replied as he used his elbow to prop himself up gingerly.

Shredder sighed and sat up with him. It was still dark out, and neither of them bothered to get out of bed. "What was it about?" She asked, holding the side of Dinobot's face with her left hand.

He jerked his head away from her hand and looked into the dark, away from her glowing, green optics. "You are **not** helping." He said, recalling briefly, the end of the dream, when Shredder fell out of the tree, unconscious.

The femme sighed again and lay a comforting hand on his shoulder. "I'm sorry, Dinobot. It was your dream. I'll leave it at that."

He turned back to face her, the only thing he was able to see, being her glowing, bright green optics and the shadows they cast of her domestic, cat-like face. She blinked and looked at him apologetically.

He shook his head. "No. You have a..right to know." When she raised an optic ridge, he continued. "You were **in** it."

Both her optics widened and something that looked like realization flickered through them. It was gone just as quickly as it appeared. "Really?" She asked, her beautiful optics narrowing curiously. "Go on," She said, then added quickly: "But only if you want."

"Of course." Dinobot then proceeded to tell her everything from the dream that he remembered, putting special emphasis on the end, when Megatron shot her out of the tree.

When he finished, the look in Shredder's optics was slightly confusing. There was pain, and lots of it, also a great deal of sorrow and a smidgen of fear.

"What is..the matter?" He asked.

"Oh, nothing." She said, closing her optics and shaking her head. When she opened her optics, the aforementioned emotions were gone.

Dinobot reached out to stroke the side of her face, and without warning, Shredder began to cry. "Oh, no, no, no. It's alright." He assured her as he pulled her into a tight hug, wrapping his arms around her. She just cried harder, her whole body convulsing with the sobs of sorrow and pain, though from what, Dinobot didn't know. She buried her face in his chest, and he kissed the top of her head. "Now you **cannot** tell me that..**nothing** is wrong." He said smartly as he tilted her head upwards slowly. Her glowing optics were dimmed by tears that he attempted to wipe away with the blunt side of his claws. "Tell me, please." Dinobot pleaded. "I wish to..help you."

She sniffled and wrapped her arms around Dinobot's chest, hugging him tightly. "I **will** tell you," She said, muffled. "but right now, I just need a hug."

"Alright." They lay back down and Shredder held tightly to Dinobot, whimpering every once in a while, before she fell back into recharge, still clinging to him as if she was afraid that he was going to leave her alone.

The next time the couple woke up, it was daylight outside.

Dinobot tried to heave himself up, but found that Shredder was still clinging to him desperately, her cute, cat-like face no longer contorted with pain or grief. "Shredder," He said, and he gently poked her arm with the tip of his biggest claw. She groaned slightly, then promptly swung one leg up and over the both of his. He sighed in exasperation, and decided to poke and prod her some more. The femme was in a really deep sleep, and eventually, poking and prodding her became amusing, as she reacted differently each time. If he poked her belly, she squirmed and brought her tail around to whack his hand with. If he touched anywhere on her face, she snarled drowsily and tried to bite him. If he nuzzled her face with his own, she actually **did** bite him. Finally, he decided to run a gentle claw down her side, where he knew she was very ticklish. She gave a violent jolt and her optics shot open. He stopped tickling her and she looked up at him sleepily. She smiled slightly and gave him a kiss. "You have..weird sleeping habits." He said, a playful smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.

She giggled groggily and sat up, her back against the wall. "What did you **do**?"

He sat up as well, and put his arm across her shoulders. "These claws are good for..at least three things." He started, holding his claws up in front of them both. "Poking, prodding, and...slicing." He smiled.

Shredder chuckled and there was a knock at the door.

"Who is it?" Dinobot asked as he got out of bed and walked towards the door.

"Only me." Megatron said through the door before Dinobot opened it. "May I come in?" Dinobot gave a slight nod and the Predacon leader entered the room slowly. "I heard some...noises last night." He began, looking at the femme. "**Melancholy** noises." He added quickly as Shredder turned her face away. "I trust you two are getting along alright."

"Yes." Dinobot replied simply.

"Just memories." Shredder said, cutting in as she politely stood up and approached the larger of the two mechs.

"Ah. That's a pity." He responded. "Well, come to the control room when you are ready." Then he left.

"By the way," Dinobot started as Shredder yawned and stretched. "What was that..last night?"

"The dream you described to me was..." She paused and took a moment to regain her composure. "what happened before you..." Her voice trailed off uncomfortably.

"**Died**." The mech finished. "But in the dream, I was on the..Maximal side."

"I didn't say it was totally accurate." She said, smiling after a brief pause.

"Were you...sad?" Dinobot asked slowly.

"**That's** the understatement of the century." She said, smiling grimly. "But you're back now, and that's what matters." She gave him a quick hug and kiss, then dragged him out the door.

--

Sorry for the horrendously long delay. I have to be in the mood to write BW and I wasn't for the longest time. R&R please, it's how I get by!


End file.
